Jon Johnson Photo/Gila Herald: Crews were battling a wildfire in the desert north of the Copper Canyon subdivision near the Gila River on Monday.
Video By Jon Johnson/Gila Herald
By Jon Johnson
SAFFORD – Fire crews from Safford and Thatcher were battling to contain a wildfire in the desert near the Gila River roughly a quarter-mile north of the Copper Creek subdivision Monday.
The fire erupted in the afternoon and was first reported to the Gila Herald at about 5:40 p.m., by which time thick, black smoke could be seen rising into the air as brush and thickets of trees went up in flames.
The fire was burning brush and making its way eastward pushed by prevailing winds. A wildfire crew from the Thatcher Fire Department was on scene in a wildland firefighting vehicle, roaming through the brush and thick sand, stopping to douse trees in an attempt to guide the fire and stop its progression.
The crew soon ran out of water, however, and had to temporarily leave to refill its tanks before coming back to battle the blaze some more. The fire was still burning into the night as of this report.
While the fire is only roughly a quarter-mile from residences, there were no structures in apparent danger from the behavior of the fire as of Monday and it appeared to just be clearing the brush and, possibly, could be beneficial. No official word was given by first responders that anyone living nearby should be worried about their property. There was also no indication of how the fire started.
Click here to view a photo album from the fire.
